Hegemony

Hegemony can be defined as “the social, ideological, or economic influence exerted by a dominant group” (Merriam Webster). The term hegemony was popularized on the left by Antonio Gramsci (1891-1937), an Italian Marxist philosopher, journalist, writer, and politician.

Examples of Hegemony

Private property laws	Private property laws were developed to protect the interests of elites who have the capital to own, and maintain ownership, of such property.  These laws, for example, prevent activists from blockading the business activity that benefits the owners of the property, as they could be arrested for conducting direct actions on private property without permission. Activists would not be arrested for performing the same actions on public property.
Big banks	Private banks were created with corporate interests in mind, and their sole purpose is to profit. Today, due to their financial power, banks can be found almost anywhere; from charity and NGO programs, to scholarship opportunities, to the ownership of sport, art or entertainment venues, to the sponsorship of events etc.
Media	Mainstream media upholds the ideology of those that own the platforms to favour their interests. For example, the concept of 'objectivity' in media is supposed to encourage neutral takes on news stories so that individuals can form their own opinions. However, objectivity is a myth, and what is considered 'objective' is largely determined by the elite. Thus, the media perpetuates the status quo and never challenges it. We see this for example in a limited coverage of the climate crisis and the systemic reasons for why we got here. Whereas a large portion of our media cover stories on crime, sports and entertainment, where there is no critical analysis of systemic issues. For more on media objectivity, see this podcast episode by Sandy Hudson and Nora Loreto.

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